Training was grueling, but the nights with Leyla and Mira were his sanctuary. Their bond had become the bedrock upon which his new, terrifying power was built.
One night, after a particularly harsh session where Kassius had him trying to manipulate the arterial blood of a living, sedated Tier 5 Corrupted (a ethically questionable practice the old man dismissed as "necessary"), Echo returned to their suite shaking with exhaustion and moral unease.
Mira drew him a bath in the sonic cleanser, the vibrations soothing his muscles. Leyla brought him a nutrient-rich paste, feeding him with a unusual gentleness.
He told them of the lesson, of the living Corrupted, of the feeling of its ichor fighting his will like a trapped animal.
"It's one thing to kill them in battle," he confessed, his head in Mira's lap. "It's another to… puppet their bodies while they're helpless."
Leyla, curled at his feet, placed a hand on his ankle. "Kassius is teaching you to survive. To win. The Corrupted wouldn't grant you mercy."
"I know. But I need to remember what I'm fighting for. Not just to control, but to protect." He looked at them. "You are my reason. This," he gestured between them, "is my truth."
He reached for them, not in hunger, but in need. They came to him, shedding their clothes, joining him in the wide bed. This union was different—slower, deeper, more profound.
As they moved together, Echo didn't just feel their pleasure; he felt it in their blood. The rush of warmth to Leyla's skin, the quickening pulse at Mira's throat. He could feel the bond not just as energy, but as a shared, living rhythm.
He experimented gently, not to control, but to enhance. He willed a slight increase in blood flow to Leyla's tired muscles, easing her aches. He guided a calming rhythm to Mira's anxious heart.
They gasped, feeling the effects not as magic, but as profound, intimate care.
[ Bond Deepening: Sanguine Harmony ]
[ Bloodline Integration: Bonds recognized as vital systems. ]
[ Bond Points +15 ]
[ Ability Unlocked: Vital Share – Can voluntarily regulate a bonded ally's blood flow to accelerate healing or reduce fatigue. Cost: Minimal own energy. ]
After, wrapped in a tangle of limbs and contentment, Mira traced the faint crimson tracery that appeared on Echo's skin when his bloodline was active. "It's beautiful," she whispered. "A map of your strength."
"It's yours," Echo replied, meaning it in every way.
Their peace was shattered by an alert on Echo's wrist-band. A priority message from Kaelen, marked with the Black-Ops sigil.
"New intelligence. Corrupted are mobilizing for a major strike on a Genesis World—a fledgling reality still forming its laws. If they corrupt it at birth, they create a permanent stronghold of unstable, malignant energy. Mission briefing at 0500. Bring everything you have. This is a Tier 8 environment. Dawn-Class confirmed."
Echo held his bonded closer.
The respite was over.
The war was calling.
And for the first time, he would step onto the battlefield not just as a soldier or an anomaly.
But as a Blood Sovereign.